Continuously-operated kiln



c. SMITH CONTINUOUSLY OPERATED KILN Mdrch 30,1926.

6 Sheets- Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 23, 1925 March 30 1926. 1,578,559

. c. SMITH CONTINUOUSLY OPERATED KILN Filed Feb. 23, 1923 6 Sheets-Sheet2 Match 30 1926.

C. SMITH CONTINUOUSLY OPERATED KILN Filed Feb. 23, 1923 6 Sheets-Sheet 5March 30,1926. V 1 ,578,559

C. SMITH CONTINUOUSLY OPERATED KILN Filed Feb. 23, 1923 6 Sheets-Sheet 4I By-Wlki h March 30 1,578,559 C. SMITH I CUNTINUOUSLY OPERATED KILNFiled Feb. 23, 1925 u Y Z riilillrlil, I III c. SM ITH connnvousmrOPERATED KILN v Filed Feb; 25, 1923 -6 Sheets-Sheet 6 March 30 1926.1,578,559

- jnwiao w UNITED STATES;

CLAUDE SMITH, or cBiIoAco ILLInors.

I con'rInUoUsLY-ornnie'mn KILN.

Application filed February 23, 192a. Serial no. 620,574.

1 0 all whom it 'HZ-(l'j/ concern:

Be it known that I, GLAUDE' SMITH, a citizen of theUnitedStates,'residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook' and State ofIllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inContinuously-Operated Kilns, of which the following is a specification-Prior to my invention it has been customary to burn clay products suchas brick, tile, etc, either in kilns in which the products are depositedor stacked in Stationary charges and which therefore requireintermittent operation, the products being removed and replaced betweensuccessivefirings, or in continuously operated kilns in which the brickor 'the like are fed through long horizontal tunnels or kilns andsubmitted therein to the flames and products of combustion necessary todry, heat and bake. them at the required temperature. The Objections tothe first named. style of kiln are many and obvious. Among theobjections to the horizontal form of kiln may be mentioned the-fact thatit is impossible in such a kiln to get uniformity of treatment. The hotgases and products of combustion by which the kiln is heated, naturallyseek the upper portion of the kiln and the lower portion thereof istherefore much cooler, the- 7 articles treated therein being inconsequence imperfectly burned; or, if. heat is maintained suflicient toproperly burn the lower part of the charge,it is unnecessarily high inare successively dried, burned and cooled in vertical shafts having theadvantage among others over the horizontal shafts that the hot air,gases and products of combustion naturally distribute themselvessubstantially uniformly throughout the cross-section .of

'the shafts so that all the articles undergoing treatment at anyparticular level at any particular time are under substantially the sameconditions of temperature, etc. In the preferred form of the inventionthe kiln is constructed in two shaftsconnected by a Patented Mar. 30,1926 r PATENT:OFFER;*

flue at their tops, and the fire boxes or other I means for providingthe hot air andgases.

for burning'an'd drying the brick are connected to one of said, shaftsmidway the top. and bottom" thereof so 'tl atthegases, etc., rise to thetop of saidshaft and then are conveyed across and down the othershaft.The'brickor other wares treated are conveyed against the current ofgases, first upwardly through the last mentioned shaft to the topthereof, then transferred by suitable transfer mechanism to the firstmentioned shaft down which they are slowly conveyed, their temperaturebeing gradually raised from the time they enter the last mentioned shaftuntil they'reach the fire'boxes on their passage down the firstmentioned shaft, after which they are gradually cooled and finallyremoved at the bottom thereof, The brick are thus gradually heated,dried and burned and then cooled before their removal from the kiln, andtheair entering the" kiln is gradually heated bythe descending brick asit ascends to the fireplaces after which,

the heat is extracted by the articles being. treated. The constructionistherefore-not only efficient in that it treats all the" m2.-terialequallyand in precisely the same manmingled-with the products ofcombustiomit is gradually cool-ed. until substantially allv ner, but'is' economical in that all of the heat furnished by the fireplacessubstantially is utilized. 7 v v, In the accompanylng drawings I haveshown and in the'following specification de scribed a preferred form ofmy invention.

It is to be understood, however, that the specific disclosure is forthe" purpose of exemplification only and that the scope of the inventionis defined in the following claims in which I have endeavored todistinguish-j it from the prior art, so far as known to me, withouthowever relinquishingor abandon ing any portion or feature thereof.

Referring to the drawings Fig. 1 is' a vertical section representing'abuilding in which a kiln of my improved construction is erected; Fig. 2is a vertical sectionon a planeparallel'to that of Fig. 1,- showing thekiln on an enlarged scale; Fig. Bis a vertical section of the shaft inwhich the wares v receive'their final treatment on the plane of line 33of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a similar view of the other shaft; Fig." 5 isahorizontal section on an enlargedscale of the burning shaft on the'line'55 of'Fig. 2; Fig. 6a

I eral zviews.

drying to the burningshaft Fig. 9 a plan of a pallet used in thehandling of the brick; Fig. 10 aside elevation of the carrier forming apart of the transfer mechanism; ,Fig.

llzan endview of the same; Fig. 12 a detail in elevation; Fig.,13asideelevatlon ofa modified for-1110f the kiln on a. reduced, scale;

' Figlt, a vertical section on the planevof the lines 14114 of Figplgand Fig. is a side view partly in elevation of a detail.

Each part or element of the construction isidentified .vith thesamereference character whereverii't occurs throughout the sev- MReferring,first to Fig. the kiln as comprising the dryingshaft andflthe burningshaft- 1B enclosed in the bnildingfl, which, serves as ,asupportfor thetransfer mechanism indicated a generally at D. The-brick stackcd readyfor convey-.

ance' into. the {kiln are shown at with tracks F. leading therefrom tothe kl-111; for

conveying the brick to the latter. Simil larly' at G are, shown tracksfor conveying awayflthebrick or, other material after hav- 'ing beentreated.

In the. form of the invention shown in- Figs. 2- to 7 inclusive, thevertical shaft-s A,

B, are connected at or near theirupperends:

by afiue 10, the shaft Bbeing provided at apoi'nt preferably more ,thanhalf way up with the heating means which are illustrated as fire boxes.11, 11 -(see Fig. 3),;Preferably the shafts are composed ofsteeljackets '12, 1.3, suitably reinforcedby; longitudinally extendedbeams 14,16, and lined with brick as at 17, 18.". The-lower end of shaftA is connected by La flue, 19 (Fig. 7) with a fan chambenfchilnney, orother-suitable suction device- H. Theshaft Bis provided at its upperendwith a side, door 20, and a cover door 21, and shaft-A witha similarside door 22 and cover 28, which doors and covers are normally closed.More or less air' is per-" mitted to enter thebottom of the shaft B, asfor example. through the doorway .or opening 2 (see Fig; 2) and, beingdrawn upward in said shaft, mixes with; thehot gases issuing from thefire boxes 11, flows upward" through shaft B,- across through flue lO toshaft Arand' thence downward to; fine 19. As will hereafter appear, theshafts arelzept practically or completely filled with brick or otherearthen ware to bedried onfired,

'whichearthen ,ware is continuously introduced to the-bottom ofthe.shaftfA,con, veyedd upward slowly and intermittently therein;transferred to shaft ;B and slowly loweredtherein ,to :be. removedthrough the opening 24. Thus the brick is first intro- 1', -I have showndu'ced tothe gases and productsof combustion from which the heat hasbeen largely extracted, and as it rises through the shaft A isgraduallyheated and dried by coming into contact with increasinglyheated prod nets of combustion, is transferred to the top of, shaftB,,fed downwardly therein reaching the zone of maximum heat at about thelire boxes, at which point theburning is completed, and then graduallycooled by be ing lowered through the. incoming air in the bottom of theshaft 1B,..which it serves to pre-heat before the air reaches the firebores I In the constructionshown diagrammatically in Figs. 13 and 14,the circulationof gases and n oducts ofcombustion is slightly modified,the construction being otherwise 7 the same, In this form of the deviceav cross-flue- 25 connects. the lewer portion' of the shaft B. at 26with approximately the central portion of shaft at 27 whereby a portionof the preheated airfrom the for,

mer is carried directly into thelatter, shaft to assist in. the dryingofthe brick therein.

lhe shaft A is also provided with circulating flues 28, 29 connected tosaid smear I their bottoms by.openings 30,. 31 and attheir tops byopenings 32,33, fansfi, $5, or other CLICUlQ UDg dGVICQS being installedinterme- (liate saidupper and. lower openingsto force the circulationfrom said lower openings 7 through thecirculatlon fines and back intothe shaft through the upper openings... In Figs. 13, let, I havealsoshowna bustleflpipe- 36 surrounding theupper end :of shaft: A, andconnected to the cross-flue 10. for, disgases therefrom moretributingthe 7 through the shaft a f 4 V:

The mechanical means for handling or carrying-the brick are the samewhich ever circulation-of air and gases. is employed. Broadly spcaking,,they coni jrise.,endless chain means for supportingslowlyand in evenlytermittently elevating brickin the shaft A and for slowlyandintermittentlylowering it m. the shaft 13, the"operatingmechanism forthe chains being so connected that the weight of brick in one shaft issubstantially balanced by the weight of the brick inthe other shaftwhereby comparatively flittle power is required toseife ct the necessaryslowmovement of the chains.

Specifically, the Ibirck handling meansv in the two shifts differ for a;reason whichwill appear. 7. In each shaft an openingis formed in thelower end. thereof' the openingST' in the shaft A being,forfheintroductio of the brick, and. the opening 24, referred. to Iabove, in the shaft B being for thearemova'l of the brick. Theseopenings; may. be closed in any suitable manner exceptduringitheinsertion or removalof' the brickl Referring now to- Figs, 2, 4 and 6,it will: be seen that the means for traversing the bricks upward throughthe shaft A consists in two series of chainsl lO arranged"respectivelyupon the opposite side walls of the shaft. .Eaolr series, in theparticular construct-ion shown,

comprises four chains extending nearlythe lengtlrof the shaft,..ezirried at their upper ends by driven sprockets tl, and at their lowerends by idler sprockets 42. As shown in Fig. 4 the sprockets are mountedin slot-s or apertures extending through the wall of the shaft so thatthe chains move. upward within the shaft, and downward outside theshaft. lVithin the shaft the chains run in channels formed by embeddingchannel irons within'the brick work (see Fig. 6). The shaft is bracedonv the exterior by vertical Ibeams H of which there is one directl yopposite or in register with each channel, and the beams are provided attheir upper ends with brackets in wh1ch "the shafts 46 carrying thedriven sprockets are jo-urnaled. The idler sprockets 42 are mounted onshafts 48 which are journaled in pillow blocks 49 secured to theconcrete or other base of the shaft (see Fig. 12);.

sprockets 41 will i mounted and adjusted relative to "each other thatfor each chair on any chain there isa corresponding chair on each of theother chains. Thus as the chains move upward within the shaft. Asuccessive horizontal series'of chairs are presented each seriescomprisingfour chairs or eight in all.

For the purpose of presenting the brick to be supported by the chainsand carried upwardly through the shaft A, they are stacked in uniformstacks or'uni'ts, each stack being carried by a pallet 51. The con-jstruction of these pallets is best seen in Fig. 9. It comprises a pairof parallel sidebars .52, 52 which may be conveniently formed of pipe ofsuitable strength, and crossbars 53 connecting the same which mayproperly be formed of small channel beams. The pipes and channel beamsare rigidly connected together. The cross-bars are of such length andthe longitudinalbar s consequentlyso spaced that when the palletisplaced in the bottom of'the shaft A in horizontal position, thelongitudinal bars are in the path of movement of the respective seriesof chairs and adapted to be picked up thereby. For convenienceofghandling, the loaded pallets are stacked upon supports 54 adjacenttracks 55 upon which a truck 56 is adapted-to travel; The roof57jprotects the'brick on the supports 54; from the weather.' The tracks55 extend into the lower end oftheshaft A 5 (see Fig.

7 so that successive pallets carrying stacks of brick,'1nay betransferred by hand or' otherwise to the trackand carried into the lowerend .ofthe shaft Ag Each brick-carrying pallet is placed on the 'truckinsuch a position that when the latter is shoved mto the bottom of shaft Athe longitudinal bars 52 of the pallet" extend close to the! chains ontheir respective sidesof the shaft and in positionto be" engaged by thechairs on said chains as 'previouslydescribed. Preferably I provide apair of stands 54 upon opposite'sides of the. tracks 55 which standsarcadapted to receive the pallets of brickconveyed into the shaft from thetruck, thus releasing the latter for further service. "For this purpose.the top or platform 56 of the truckis made adjustable ver tically andthe stands are of a height intermediate the height of the platform whenin its upper and lower positions respectively. The truck isfrun into theshaftwith the platform raisedslightly higher than the stands and whenthe proper position reached the. platform is lowercdj-thus transto thestands and freeing the truck. In Fig. 15 I have shown a'suitableconstruction of truck for the above purpose. The truck ferring thepallet with the brick thereon comprises a stationary'frame 58 carried bythe wheels 59 and provided with guides 62 Which receive and guide theslides 61 arranged .on opposite sides of the adjustable platform 62. Thel atte'r compris'eseen'd pieces 60 and sidemembers 62*. The "slide I 61and guide 62 maintain the horizontal positionof the adjustable platformbut the latter is supported ;from the stationary frame of the truckby-meanslof rollers 66 carried on arms 65 'attachedtoshafts Shafts'63211305921113 worm sectors 67 which are engaged by worms 68 upon alongitudt nal shaftfi provided with handles 70 for turning the same}Obviously, by-rotating the handles 70 and: shaft69 the platform may beadjusted and fixedin adjusted position. By this construction or someequivalent means thebrick may be carried into the stack A and depositedon the stands 54 ready to be taken up by thechain's in their upwardmovement.

The successive pallets each bearing its stackof brick are picked upfrom-the stands and slowly lifted through the drying shaft A, arrivingsuccessively at'the to-p thereof. As each unit reaches the positionshown ata in 4'the doors 22, 23 are openedto pertransferring mechanismby which the brick journalld in standards" 64; on said frame; 1

is carried to and deposited inthe-burning kiln'or shaft B. The precisecharacter of this transfer mechanism is n'otmaterial to thisinvention'in its'broader aspect." In the specific form of the inventionillustrated the transfer mechanism is adapted to permitthe brick to betransferred to the burning shaft without 'the pallets the brick beingstacked in a continuous column in said shaft. Re.

ferringinoreqparticularly to Figs. 8 toll inclusive, lt-willthe observedthat the trans fern1ec hanism Comprises a carr1er7-1 'having a series ofsupporting'bars or tines 72,

which are so spaced as to enter between the cross bars or slats 53. ofthe pallets. The

tinesarenot directly connected'together but each is supported towardsits rear end by an Fupright 73 and braced to maintain its angularposition with respect to said upright'by a strut 74 extending from itsrear end 75 and secured to the'upper end of its upright 73. Theend tinesare preferably invertedU-shapedin cross section, as shown at 76 and areconnected by struts 77 with uppcr'hori'zontal bars 78, the rear ends of'which'are likewise connected to the upper ends of the uprights 73. Eachend of the carrier is'thereforein the form of a trapezodial frame bracedby anupright. The

two end framesareconnected together by the transverse members 82- at theupper ends ofthe uprights, thetransverse members 83 and8 l connectingtheforward upper "corners-of the end-frames and the transverse L- 7 bar85' connecting the uprights towards their lower ends, Saide-nd framesare further secured together by the round bars 86, 87, 88

extendingbetween themat their upper rear corners at an intermediatepoint onv the cuprrght members and at their" forward upper earnersrespectively. Nuts 89, 90,. 91 screwed on the respectiveends of theseveral "rodsout-side the end frames prevent the latter vspreading, Theintermediate 1 tines at their forward ends consist of a T-bar 79 whichis supported by member 80 secured to the web 81 of the T-barbeneaththetop thereof and to an-upright 73 as well as a fiat strut74extendingffrom the rear end of said tines to the upper end of anupright 73. Foreach tine also and connected to the upright and rearbrace or strut th'ereof,there is a: parallel upperf bar 78 butno forwardbrace or strut corresponding to the struts 7 7.

thus "secured a rigid carrier, the tines of which are adapted to extendbetween the slats of the -pallets and engage with their broad upper.surfaces the bricks; supported 93 of the supporting-surfaces. Nhen thethereby... As shown for example in Fig. 8, the upper two courses of brck, (or in case t le is being treated the arrangement s substantiallythe same,) are so groupedas to afford spaces for the tines of'thecarrier to enter between them to engage theunit or block of brickimmediately above. The broad supporting surfaces of'the tines are" ofsuch length as to completely underlie the; stack of bricks when thecarrier is in position-to raise a unit but are so short as to just clearone of the longitudinal bars offthe pallet when the other longitudinalbar lies between the uprights 73 and the'rearends carrier therefore, israised by the means hereinafter l described the supporting surfaces orother tines engage and support the brick or other material on the palletand also one of the longitudinal bars ofthelatfor, but the pallet beingengaged at no other point swings down ward awayfrom the brick to :avertical .positionor it 5 may be swung back of the carrier out of theway asdesired, and whenthe load ofbrick has been deposited in the mannerhereinafter described the pallet maybe removed from'the carrier forvfurther useand the carrier. is then in condition to;receiveanother,loadof brick. As the uppermost-pair .oflaye rs of brickof 95 eachunit areformed into spaced columns or supports ad aptedto receive between themthe tines of the carrier, andgas eaclrunit, is conveyed inthis conditioninto, the burning kiln, the. following unit onblock may ,be I de- 100posited thereon. by running thecarrier into the upper end oftheburningkiln with'the tines thereof between. such columns, loweringthe carrier untilrthe ,brick thereon reston the columns ofthe unit belowand then 10 withdrawing the carrier. i Any suitable means may beemployed for moving the carrier, from its position within I theone shaftto its position-within 'thelother shaft and I have, shown. in Fig. lawellknown mechanism of this character, the 'tletails of .which are so Ifamiliar that. they need notbediscussed. The building C containing thekiln is provided with tracks 9%, Mon its oppositeside .walls, uponwhich' a 1 1 traveling frame is supported by rollers 96 in theusualmanner. I Said frame is formed or provided-with tracks 97 uponwhich a trolley 98 may be reciprocated,.which trolley I directlysupports .thecarrier heretofore vdescribed. It is necessary towprovidemeans for raislng and lowering the carr er -w1th reference to thetrolley, whichinay be .ac-

complished in a variety ofwell-known ways as, for example, by suspendingthe carrier 1.25 l

by cables 99 secured to a Windlass 100 upon which thecables may bewound. The windlass isprovidedv with. a ratchet and pawl for preventingunwinding to maintainthe carrier. at any altitude to which itis .wound.13

a Referring now more particularly to Figs. 2, 3yand 5,,it willbe seenthat the-burning kiln or shaft B, as above stated," is provided, belowthe fireboxes, with endlesschains 103 of less length than thesimilarchains .inthe other shaft, but similarly'mounted in the walls ofthe shaft. Vertical beams 1041support the brackets 105, furnishingbearings for shaft 106 of sprockets 106 andsprockets 107' at the lowerends of said beams are mounted in a manner similar to sprockets42 inshaft A. The'chains 103 arealso'provided' withchairs 108 which may be inall respects similar to the chairs'5O in stack A andc'ser've'to supportthe column of brick. :In shaft B,- however, the brick are supportedabove the chains in a continuous column and without the .useofpallets.For this purpose bars 117 are supported ,upfon the chairslOS 3 and-inturnsupport the beams 118] It will berecalledthat the upper pair of,layers of brick of each unitare arranged intspaced columns which serve,as a previously described, for the 'entryofthe tines of the:Ltransferring device between them and this arrangement is maintaind inthe column of gbrick inthe burning kiln as it descends to the chains.The transverse spaces between the columns havethe further purpose andfunction to permitthe insertion of the bars ll8 vwhich takesthe weightQf'the column of brick above them. The method of inserting thefbars-ll'?and 118 will beunderstood :fr'om-the following. l/veliave'referred. tothe tracks 112 within "the lower endof a shaft B for permittingthe'entry thereto of :thetruck 121 by which the brick are removed fromthe-shaft and ion oppositecsides of the tracks are stands as in thebottom of shaft A. These stands are adapted to receive theilowermost'setof beams 118 andtemporarily :relieveithe {chains ofgthejweight of the column of brick when the chains are lowered for this.purpose. Asea'oh succeeding unit ,of brick at the;lower end of thecolumnis "ready for removal, itis' lowered until its supporting beams'118 rest upon said stands. The chains are then given a furthermovenient in the same direction sufficient togpermit th-eiplacing offthebars 117 ,and the beams 118 under the second unit-'ab ovefthe unit whichis to be removed. .Byi reference .to Fig. 5 itwill be seen that oneofthe end -wall's. of the shaft 13 is forined with openings120 throughwhich the, bars 117; maybe :inserted'and placed upon thechairs 108 andtl'1e'side walls of said shaft are formed with ;openings 119 througlrwhich the1-beams .118 may be placed inposition between the spacedcolumns of r brick constituting the upper layers of the unit .next abovethat-to be -removed; When {these bars and 'b'eamsfghave .been placed; inposition the; chains arejmoved to a slight extent in the oppositedirection so that the newlylinserted bars and beams ing the bottom unitwhich is now restingon c the stands '54. I The lower .un'itiis now rep Ii moved from: the standsfby raising the radjustable platform; of thetruck 121- ;fivhich,

as shown'i'n Fig-'2 is provided withr'i beams 123 so spaced apart? as:to receive between 'theni the beams 118 supporting 'the xlower unit- Asthe platform of truck l2l is raisedy' course available fork-reusei'nlshaft B. ,After @theweight of the coluinii 'f b'ricks has beenremoved from the flows nost -u'nit by re- --'vers'ingj; the movementjlofhe; jchains,,1,the weightof said COlllHLl s dbetwe'en the two setsofbeams 118 wliiclia -thenin-pla'ce 011 the chains; Aftertheburniingan'd cool-'- in g have prepared another nnit' for removaltithitis'lowered on to the stands and removed by afrepetitien oif theoperations .justfde' scribed, -lnjd of bars 1117 ancl bean s lltl aplatform 124: surroun ds shaft 13 at. a; suitable, elevation.

Itremains toide ribe the means 91" -0per ating the chains. ia Eor thispurpose; the

sprockets 11 in shaft A" are 'fast'upontheir i shafts 46-and the latterare extendejd 'beyond shaft A toward shaftBand'provided with bevelpinions125 whichmesh withgpinions 126 upon upright shafts 127 whichcarry'at o facilitate; the insertion T v their lower ends ;pinions 128by :which said shafts are, driven (see F igs. 2 andfl); The -pinions'128 are driven bybe'vel pinions 129 on the ends-of shafts 130 ,whi'chcarry the ;worm wheels 131. Said wor n wheels are driven by worms 132 onhorizontallshaft 133. The worms 132 also engage and drive the Wormwheels :110 npontheishaftsof which are mounted beveled piniojns 1 8 1-which drive p nlons; 135 "upon thelow-er ends of shafts 1 36. The latterdrive ithe fshafts 15' 106fby means of bevelpinions13 7 seeEig. 2) Theshaft 133 is driven "from a motorQllG through the-medium ofa belt 138and gears 113,-g11gt. I It .will 'now' be seen that the t columns ofbrick inthe two shafts-gsub'stantia 'lly balance each other, and themotor ds I 4 substantially relieved of strain; except lsuc'h as isnecessary to overcomev the frictio the parts. i a a i r-a -1.- In a kilnfor; burning and drying brick, etc. avertical drying shaft and verticalburning shaft, means for v conveying material up the drying shaft,;afirebox comnnr "nicating with the burning shaft and a flue connecting.the shafts near their respectivetops;

. 2. In a kiln-for burning and drying brick,

- etc., a vertical drying shaft, a vertical burningshaft, a

the-tops. thereof, meanszfor supplyingh'ot gases 7 to the burning shaft,anexhaust means I connected to the bottom of the drying shaft wand meansfor conveying the material up fine connecting such: shafts near thedrying shaft and down the burning shaft. 1

3. In avkilln for burning and'dry-ing brick, etc-. a vertical dryingshaft and a vertical burning shaft, 'a flue connecting such shafts neartheir tops, fire boxesarrang'ed intermediate the upper and 1 lower-endsof the burningshaft, an exhaust means "connected to the lower "end of'the' drying shaft" and means for raising articles to be burned throughthe drying iSllftfi? and lowering them through the burning shaft. V I

4. In :a kiln for drying and burning brick and' th'e like, aburningshaft drying shaft, endlesschains for raising the brick in the dryingshaft, snpports'at intervals onsaid chains for-supportingthe Weight ofthe brick-above them, and means'for lowering'thebrickthrough the burningshaft.

5; In a kiln for d-rying and burning brick -and'the like aburning shaftand a drying shaft,a flue' conne'cting shafts near the tops thereof,means for 'su'pplyingfheated gases 7 to theb'u'rn'ing shaft and forremoving them from "thebo ttom of the drying shaft, means forwraisingbrick in the dryingshaftymeans for transferring the brickinthe dryingshaft to the burning shaft anddneans for loweringthe brick inthe burningshaft.

6. ln'afki-ln for drying-andburning brick and the like, a verticalshaft, sets of endless chains on opposite w all's thereof,means for Ymoving said 'ehains upwardly within the "shaft,; supports *on saidchains and pallets 1 adapted to receive loads of-material to be driedthereon and to be engaged and carried bythe supports on said chains, and"means outside said shaftfor lowering the brick.

and the like, a ver't;

7 In kiln f jr-drying-jand burning brick cal shaft, ser'ies'of chainsonfopposite sides'of said shaft, sprockets for said 'ichain so ijenrnaied' 'with reference to the walls of the shaft that the chains maymove in one-direction within the shaft and in the'reverse directionoutsideth e sh-aft,

supports on said chains,- IHGZITIS adapted to "be carried by saidsupports and to'rec'eive loads [of brick and means outside said-shaft 6for lowering the brick.

8. In akiln for drying and burning brick and the like, a verticalshaft,sin'eans for supplying heated gases at the top thereof-andWithdrawing {them from the bottomthereof, series of "endless *chainsarranged on opposite Walls of said shaft, means for sups'upports -for'carrying loads 'of' material to be clrains on opposite sidesefsaid-shaft'havingvertically movable platform thereon adaptporting andmoving said-"chains to cause them to move upward within the shaft,supports on the chains andimeans engaging-said treated, and meansoutside said shaft for lowering the brick. Y 7 a '9. In a kiln forlrying and bur'ning brick and the like, vertical shaft, vertical beamson opposite sides thereof, sprockets mounted at the opposite endsfof-saicl beams With-" -in :slotsin the Walls of the shaft, endless chainscarried by said 'sp'rockets,-mean's for. rotating certain of" saidsprocketsto move the endlesschains, channels within theshait in whichthe inner, runs of said bli a ins'inove,

*suppo'rts von said chains an'ddeviees carried by said supports forreceiving ,nia'terial to be treated and meansoutside said shaft'forlowering the brick. 1 a V 10. In a kiln ffor' drying.- and-biirningfibrick and the like, aipa-ir of vertical shafts, means for heatingsaidshafts, meansfor carrying the-"material 'to be treated u ward in oneo f said shafts, :ineans for low ring material to be treated throughtheotiier said shaft; a firebox communicating with }the lat- 'ter, and?a flue connectingsa id shafts 'near theirtops. a 7 v kiln for dryingand: binning brick and the like, a pair o-f vertical shafts, means forcarryingmaterial to' be "treated upward in one of'said shafts; means forlowering material to be treated throngh 'tlie 1-10 at in'ter'valsthereon mean s aci apted 'te en I gage said pallets on the t ru'ck' and'raise them from the truck, and; means; for; removing saidj allets fromthenpper end "of the shaft; 13. In kiln fGIf ClfYl II'g burning brickand thelike, averticai shaft'iiavingnn openin in the lower *end anda-secen'd opening in the upper end th reof; means for V heating the saidshaft, a true-k having 'a ed to'enter-the-lowerend of sa i'd.shaft, a f

series of pallets adapted "to su portbiiek a and to be carriedbyg'saidftr'uck into said shaft, series "of endless-- thaiii'e on:opposite sides of said shaft, mea-ns'for supporting I25 and moving saidchain's upwardlywith'in the 1 shaft andgchairs on'the -chaii ns adaptedto engage the pallets for raising the same from said truck-p l l. In akiln for dryingfand burning brick and thelike, a vertical shaft, meansfor opening and closing the upper end of said shaft, an openingjin thelower end of said shaft, means for supplying heated gases to said shaft,a truck adapted ,to enter the end thereof, means for supporting materialbeing burned from said chains and means for removing the materialfromthe lower end of said shaft. i

16. In 'a kiln for drying and burning brick and the like, a verticalburning shaft having means for closing the same at the upper end and anopening at the lower end,

a truck having a vertically adjustable plat-,

form adapted to enter said shaft to receive a load of treated material,means for rais ing and lowering the platformof the truck,

endless chainson opposite sides of said shaft near the lower endthereof, supports on said chains,*means for supporting the materialbeing burned from said supports and transferring them to the platform ofsaid truck. 17. In a kiln for drying and burning brick and the like, avertical burning shaft,

means for opening and closing the same at the upper end thereof, saidshaft having an opening at the lower end thereof, a truck adapted toenter the lower end of the shaft through said opening, an adjustableplat- -form on said truck, transverse supports 123 on said truckplatform, endless chains mounted on opposite walls of said shaft andhavingsupports arranged at intervals thereon,beams received by saidsupports and sup-' porting loadsof brick, there being opening s l 119 inthe wallsof said shaft for the insertion and arrangement ofsaid beams.

18. Ina kilm for drying and burning brick and the like, a pair ofvertical shafts,

series of endless chains on opposite walls of 7 each said shaft, meansfor heating said shafts, means for supporting materials to be dried andburned from sa d chains and common I means connected to the chains onboth shafts for moving the chains in one shaft upward and in the othershaft downward whereby the load-in one shaft counterbalances'the.

load in the other shaft. V p

19. In a kiln for drying and burning brick and the like, a pair ofvertical shafts,

means for heating said shafts, means for conveying. material to betreated from the "a top of oneof saidshafts to the top of the other,series of endless chains on the opposite walls of eachsaid shaft,sprockets for supporting and drivingsaid chains, shafting and gearsconnecting said sprockets in the respective shafts whereby the load inone shaft issubs-tantially counterbalanced by the load on the othershaft,'and means for driv- V ing said mechanism.

2Q. In a kiln for drying and burning brick and the like, a pairofverticalfshaft's,

a flue connecting said'shafts near their upper" ends, a flue forexhausting one of 1 said shafts at 1t-s lower end, a means for supplyingheated gases to the other said shaft intermediate its ends and a flueconnectin said shafts intermediate their ends.

21. In a kiln for drying and burning brick and the like, a pair ofvertical shafts, i

a flue connecting said shafts near their upper ends, a means forexhausting one of said shafts at its lower end, asecond flue connectingsaid shafts intermediate their ends and means for said second flue.

' CLAUDE SMITH.

propelling the gases in

